I've Never Cried

Chapter Thirty-Two - "Okay"

"I've Never Cried"

Chapter Thirty-two

'Okay'

Joe's POV

I spent the following week repairing my relationship with Nick, as well as explaining the details of the intimacy that ensued between Selena and I. I found it odd that he was curious about the details of that night, but he was my brother, and I had owed him a lot, so I disclosed everything. 

When I had finally felt that Nick and I were in a better place as brothers, I refocused my efforts to repair the damage that I had done to Demi. The problem that I frequently encountered, however, was that Demi was nowhere to be found. Of course she had blocked both Selena and I, so I couldn't call her. But she had also neglected to go return to her house. Selena speculated that she was staying with her sister, who was still in town after her photoshoot that she'd come in town for, turned into a contractual battle between agencies. 

Still, I had no idea which hotel Dallas was staying in, and the idea of searching all of Los Angeles for one girl seemed impossible. I also knew that Demi was still pretty new to the city, so it wouldn't have made much sense to assume that she knew enough people that would let her stay with them. I decided that Nick had to be my best bet to find her, as he would be the only one that Demi could relate to through all of this.

I approached him on an early morning, shortly after he had returned from a jog. He had just come in, his face drenched in sweat, his sweat-stained shirt removed and draped over his arm.

"Hey bro," he'd said to me, pulling his headphones out of his ears. He took a long swig of an ice cold bottle of water, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "You're up early."

"How was the jog?" I leaned back on the sofa, muting the re-run of a basketball game on the television. He shut the front door behind him and smiled.

"It was more like a full-on sprint. The Karrington's chihuahua chased me for a good half mile." He and I shared a good laugh over that. 

"Sounds like a good time." I responded. Nick headed for the kitchen, so I raised my voice as I spoke from my position on the living room couch. "So hey, I need your help with something."

"Something like what?" He shouted back, and I heard some dishes clattering in the kitchen sink. Finally I stood, clicking off the TV and heading the same direction he'd gone. He looked at me once I'd entered, half a bagel hanging out of his mouth as he tied up the bag he'd pulled it from. I took a seat on one of the bar stools at the island.

"It's about Demi," I said as he tossed the bag of bagels into the pantry. Yanking the bagel from his teeth and ripping out a bite, he spoke with a mouthful of food.

"Okay, what about her?"

"Have you talked to her since . . . you know." He leaned forward across his side of the island. When he nodded, it surprised me. I didn't hesitate to ask my next question, my eyes wide.